FORMAL RECOMMENDATION BY THE NATIONAL ORGANIC STANDARDS BOARD (NOSB) TO THE NATIONAL ORGANIC PROGRAM (NOP) Date: ____3-29-07____________________ Subject: Aquaculture Standards Recommendation Chair: Andrea Caroe Recommendation The NOSB hereby recommends to the NOP the following: Rulemaking Action: __XXX__ Guidance Statement: ________ Other: ________ Statement of the Recommendation (including Recount of Vote): The NOSB recommends the attached Aquaculture Standards be adopted by the NOP NOSB Vote: Motion: Kevin Englebert Second: Joe Smillie Board vote: Yes - 12 No - 1 Abstain - 0 Absent - 2 Rationale Supporting Recommendation (including consistency with OFPA and NOP): The NOSB is proposing adding Aquaculture Standards to the Regulation. This is consistent with the OFPA: § 2102 (11) LIVESTOCK – The term “livestock” means any cattle, sheep, goats, swine, poultry, equine animals used for food or in the production of food, fish used for food, wild or domesticated game, or other non-plant life. Response by the NOP: Aquaculture Standards Recommendation National Organic Standards Board March 29, 2007 I. Introduction The NOP and NOSB have received correspondence and public comments requesting consideration of adoption of organic standards for the production of aquatic species. To facilitate this mission, the NOP created an Aquatic Animal Task Force composed of knowledgeable members of the aquaculture and organic communities. Upon receipt of the task force report, the NOSB Livestock Committee recommends that the NOP implement rule changes to allow for the production of organic aquatic animals within the regulation. Comprehensive restrictions on organic aquaculture production must be in place in order to comply with organic principles. To protect the environment and to maintain the organic integrity of products labeled as organic, the task force report specifies practices that protect these principles. Within the task force report, there are several areas that the Livestock Committee would like further public comment. Specifically, the committee recommends further fact finding on sources of feed for aquatic animals that require a diet that includes fish. The task force recommended a temporary allowance for feed that included wild caught non-organic feed, but the committee believes that further input from the organic community is required in order to determine if this practice is consistent with organic principles. Likewise, the Livestock Committee would like more dialog on the allowance of net pen operations for organic production. There appears to be conflicting opinion on whether this type of production is consistent with organic principles. These sections of the task force report are not included in the recommendation for rule making. However, the Livestock Committee intends to enter into further rule making to add these sections upon completion of further dialog with the aquaculture industry and the organic community. II. Background A. Issues of Concern Presently, NOP regulations state that fish are not included in the scope of the rule, which means that there can be no enforcement of fish products in the market place making “organic” claims. Since some foreign organic certification programs include fish standards, many products appear on the US market with an “organic” claim, which will continue until the NOP regulations include provisions for organic aquatic species. US fish producers have expressed interest in certifying their products as organic to meet the growing market demand. Two areas in which the Livestock Committee requests further industry and organic community input prior to rule making include: temporary feed provision for species requiring fish in their diets, and, open net pens. The following sections of the task force report have been removed or edited from the committee recommendation pending further evaluation. 2 In regards to feed, the following sections have been removed: (b) Fish meal from wild fish used as a feed additive or supplement may not exceed 12% by weight of feed, and fish oil from wild fish used as a feed ingredient may not exceed 12% by weight of feed as averages over the production cycle of the fish. (c) Wild fish and wild aquatic animals used for producing fish meal and oil for aquaculture may not be certified or labeled as organic for human consumption unless allowed elsewhere in this rule. Whole, chopped, or minced wild fish that does not qualify in this section may not be used as feed. (d) Fish meal or fish oil may not be sourced from any fishery classified by relevant state/provincial, national, or international fisheries authorities as follows: “at risk of reduced reproductive capacity;” “suffering reduced reproductive capacity;” “harvested outside precautionary limits;” “over-exploited;” “depleted;” “overfished;” “overfishing is occurring;” or any other comparable classification, or at significant risk of those conditions within the next recruitment cycle. (i) Fish meal and fish oil from wild fish and other wild aquatic animals may be used as additives and supplements for organic aquaculture or livestock feeds as provided in this section for seven years after the date when organic standards for farmed aquatic animals are promulgated, and must be derived from wild sources that are in compliance with (c) and (d) may be used as supplements and additives under one of the following: (1) wild fish, provided that the amount of such wild fish that goes into feeding the aquatic animals cannot exceed one pound of wild fish product fed for every pound live weight of cultured of aquatic animals at harvest; or (2) carcasses, viscera, and trimmings from the processing of wild fish and other wild aquatic animals that are destined for human consumption. The portions of processed wild fish destined for human consumption may not be certified or labeled as organic unless provided elsewhere in this rule. In regards to open net pens, the task force report has been edited as follows: (j) Open water net-pens and enclosures are (not) permitted (at this time.) where water depth, current velocities and direction, and other factors act to adequately disperse metabolic products in order to minimize accumulation of discharged solids on the sediments under net pens. However, water currents should not cause fish to expend excessive energy to swim and be unable to consume feed. Monitoring shall be employed to ensure that the natural assimilative capacity at the site and adjoining waters is not exceeded. Facility managers shall take all practical measures to prevent transmission of diseases and parasites between cultured and wild aquatic animals. Use of multiple species of aquatic plants and animals to recycle nutrients must be included in every Organic System Plan for net-pens. Except as may be provided in § 205.601 or § 205.602, chemical treatment of biofouling organisms on nets is not allowed. Any open water net pen or enclosure site must not have prohibited substances, as listed in § 205.105, applied for at least one year prior to beginning organic management. 3 C. Regulatory Framework Under OFPA: § 2102 (11) LIVESTOCK – The term “livestock” means any cattle, sheep, goats, swine, poultry, equine animals used for food or in the production of food, fish used for food, wild or domesticated game, or other non-plant life. Clearly, Congress considers “fish used for food” to be within the authority of this statute. From the 21 CFR Part 205: 205.2 Terms Defined Livestock Any cattle, sheep, goat, swine, poultry, or equine animals used for food or in the production of food, fiber, feed or other agricultural-based consumer products; wild or domesticated game; or other non-plant life, except such term shall not include aquatic animals or bees for the production of food, fiber, feed, or other agricultural-based consumer products. At the time of the implementation of the regulation, the NOP excluded aquatic animals from organic livestock production because there were no aquaculture production provisions provided. Recommendation The NOSB Livestock Committee recommends that NOP implement rule change to allow for the production of organic aquatic species. The Livestock Committee recommends the following change to the existing regulation: 205.2 Terms Defined Livestock Any cattle, sheep, goat, swine, poultry, or equine animals used for food or in the production of food, fiber, feed or other agricultural-based consumer products; wild or domesticated game; or other non-plant life, except such term shall not include aquatic animals or bees for the production of food, fiber, feed, or other agricultural-based consumer products. The Livestock Committee recommends the following addition to the regulation: 4 § 205.2 Terms defined. The following definitions shall be added to § 205.2 Terms defined. Aquaculture. The propagation and rearing of aquatic animals and plants. Aquaculture facility. Any land, structure, or other appurtenance used for aquaculture. Such term includes but is not limited to any laboratory, hatchery, rearing pond, tank, raceway, net pen, cage, raft, longline, geographically defined seafloor, or other structure or defined boundary used in aquaculture. Aquaculture product. Any product of aquaculture, including but not limited to whole alive or dead aquatic animals, gutted fish, fillets and other forms of raw or processed meat, eggs for human consumption, eggs for reproduction, skin and other animal parts, and alive, fresh and dehydrated aquatic plants, either whole or processed. By-products from aquatic animals grown in aquaculture,